When his agent, Rich Paul, revealed on a whiteboard the teams likeliest to sign him in the summer, LeBron James appeared to be choosing among five contenders after he entered free agency: the Philadelphia 76ers, the Miami Heat, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Denver Nuggets and the Cleveland Cavaliers.James, in something of a surprise, picked the 76ers.
And through the (very) early part of this season, he appears to have chosen wisely.Philadelphia is 8-1 after a win over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night.The 76ers have the most wins in the NBA entering Friday, and their high-powered starting five has jelled quickly to form an undeniable title contender.
The starting fiveIn addition to signing James, Philly traded for swingman Jaylen Brown in the offseason, forming a starting five of James, Brown, Tyrese Maxey, V.J.Edgecombe and Joel Embiid.Those five players have combined for 36 All-Star selections, five MVP awards and five Finals MVP awards.
So it’s perhaps unsurprising the group has been great together on the floor.In 77 minutes together across five games, the Sixers’ starting five has outscored opponents by 15 points.Philadelphia’s opening quintet is dominating defensively, holding opponents to only 95.4 points per 100 possessions.
(For context, the league’s best defense entering Thursday was holding opponents to 103 points per 100 possessions.)“Our defense is going to be our identity,” James said Wednesday after the win over the Pistons.“We have a lot of scoring.
We know that from individuals.We’re still figuring out that side of the floor out on the offensive side.
Defensively, that’s where we are going to make our mark.”James has meshed well with all of his co-stars so far.All two-man lineups featuring a combo of James plus one of Maxey, Brown, Embiid and Edgecombe have outscored opponents through the team’s first nine games.
Through his first seven games, James is averaging 15.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.4 assists a night.Mi...